Novice computer hacking kits found for sale on eBay

Kits that claim to help people hack into computers have been discovered for sale on the auction website eBay.

Security experts found a selection of CDs, DVDs and programs for sale on eBay that promise to help buyers learn how to break into computers over the net.

One CD - claiming to be on sale "for educational use only" - promises details of how to access other people's computers and contains a selection of programs commonly used for hacking. It is available through the site for £5.99.

Many of the programs form the basic building blocks for computer crime, allowing even inexperienced hackers to find ways to get inside their victims' computers, or of masking their identities.

Although such tools are often downloaded for free or sold on the black market, such trade usually happens in remote corners of the internet.

"This is a serious development," said Geoff Sweeney of the security company Tier-3, which spotted the auctions. "It basically puts high level hacking tools ... into the hands of almost any internet user."

Programs for sale include "email bombers" - used to send thousands of spam messages, often containing viruses - and software that can be used to crack open protected files and passwords.

Since amendments to the Computer Misuse Act last year, it is illegal to supply software and tools with the knowledge that they will be used to commit crimes.

But the tool kits are usually sold with a disclaimer, or claim to be provided for use in so-called "ethical hacking" - where legitimate security researchers test to find potential weak spots.

In a statement, eBay said it was working to prevent illegal sales from taking place.

"We have very strict and detailed rules permitting only lawful and legitimate sales on the site, and a huge amount is done to ensure that these are upheld."

It is not the first time concerns have been raised over the availability of hacking tool kits on the site. This month another batch of programs used for computer hacking was spotted on eBay, including one program, created by Russian hackers, that enables even inexperienced internet surfers to perform a huge number of hacking tasks.